


Cooking up a Catastrophe

by MaddieWrites



Category: Sanders Sides, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Cooking, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 19:05:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13371201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaddieWrites/pseuds/MaddieWrites
Summary: "Virgil, it's your turn to cook tonight." Logan reminded him."And you're not getting out of it again." Roman added.Perfect.~•~•~Virgil tries to cook but doesn't know how. Hurt/Comfort with a fluffy ending.





	Cooking up a Catastrophe

"Virgil, it's your turn to cook tonight." Logan reminded him. They'd just finished up a reluctant board game Patton had dragged everyone into. It's not that Virgil didn't like board games, he loathed board games, and he hated the forced bonding time. Patton was always trying too hard to include him, make him feel like part of the 'family'. Well, board games he could put up with, but cooking was another thing entirely. Virgil had actually forgotten about it. The others worked him into the cooking schedule after their 'Accepting Anxiety' video as yet another failed attempt to include him in things. He was only scheduled to cook one day a month, but Virgil eternally dreaded that one day a month. See, the sides were each in charge of their own breakfast, and they all ate lunch at different times, but dinner was when Patton forced everyone to sit down together and eat a properly cooked meal. Virgil was alright with that. The, awkward, forced conversations he tried to carry weren't his favorite thing, but overall it wasn't so bad. Cooking, however, was Virgil's literal worst nightmare. There were so many opportunities for him to mess everything up. He could burn the food, he could burn the house down, he could seriously injure himself in any number of ways, his meal could taste horrible, he could break plates or cups, he could blow the oven door off. And each possibility of failure led to a thousand more things to worry about. If he burnt the food, would he have to restart? Would they reluctantly order takeout? Would they be disappointed in him? If he burnt the house down... Virgil shuddered.  
"And you're not getting out of it again." Roman added. So far, he'd managed to avoid every cooking duty he was assigned to by bribery, faking an illness, or hiding really well, but this time, Virgil would actually have to cook a meal.  
"You'll do great kiddo! I know it!" Patton tried to boost his confidence but only managed to raise the expectations. Now he not only had to make edible food without hurting anyone, Virgil also had to make /good/ edible food. He sighed and headed for the kitchen, trying to quell the anxiety bubbling up inside him.

Alright, what the hell was he supposed to cook? Virgil didn't know how to make /anything/, not even pasta. But, pasta was supposed to be easy, right? He could probably make that. Virgil searched the cookbook for a pasta recipe, eventually finding a simple one involving a honey sauce and some vegetables. All he had to do was boil some pasta, mix the honey sauce, chop the vegetables, and throw it all in a pot. Why did he have such a bad feeling about this?

The first challenge was working the stove. Virgil hadn't the slightest idea how to turn it on. There were so many dials and all he wanted was the front left burner on. That one wasn't so hard to overcome. After a bit, Virgil was able to figure it out. Now put a pot of water on stove, wait until it boils. Next, he'd make the sauce. That would be easy. Even Virgil could mix basic ingredients together. Except everything was so freaking sticky! He could barely stir the mixture. Well, maybe he'd finish that later. Vegetables next, right?  
Virgil found some carrots and a cutting board. Perfect. Now which knife was he supposed to use? There were so many, all shaped differently with different handles and different blades. He picked a small one, with a nice purple handle, and set to work on the carrots.  
Cutting vegetables was hard as fuck. Virgil was terrified he'd cut himself, hands shaking so badly he couldn't even hold the knife. Well, if he boiled the pasta he could just forget the other two things and make regular spaghetti instead. Virgil, with some difficulty, snapped some pasta and got ready to add it to the pot. Except /how/? Was he just supposed to stick his hand over a pot of boiling water, drop the pasta in, and hope he didn't get splashed? No thanks, he wasn't in the mood for second degree burns. But he had to add the pasta in order to make spaghetti... Ugh why was this so hard? Virgil was starting to freak out. The others would expect dinner soon, and if he couldn't make it, he'd let Patton down, and Roman would never let him hear the end of it. He could feel an anxiety attack coming on already. Great, perfect timing. Virgil took a few deep breaths, trying to stop it. It was too late, of course. He managed to turn the oven off before he slid down the wall, curling up small and hyperventilating. The familiar flood of thoughts began. Words like 'failure', 'disappointment', and 'useless' dancing around in his mind. Virgil was crying. He couldn't even do something as simple as cooking without having a panic attack. What was wrong with him? What the /fuck/ was wrong with him?  
"Virgil, are you okay?" Logan rushed over. Amazing, wonderful, let's all gather an audience to watch Virgil freak out. A part of him was happy he wasn't alone anymore, but he was also embarrassed that Logan was watching. It took a bit, and a lot of breathing exercises, but Logic got him calmed down.  
"Virgil, what happened? Did you burn yourself? What set that off?" He asked. Embarrassingly, Virgil started sobbing uncontrollably, feeling incredibly stupid and helpless at the moment, and unable to explain why he was crying.  
"Calm down, you're okay." Logan said gently. "Can I touch you?"  
Virgil nodded and reached for him, wanting comfort from the mother-figure. Logan pulled him into a hug, remembering what he'd learned about hugs and using it as best as he could. When hugging someone who was scared or sad, you should hold them tightly, like you're trying to pull them into you. This provides a sense of security.  
"If you'd said you were this scared of cooking, I would've done it for you, or at least helped you." Logan whispered.  
"Really?"  
"Of course. Would you like to attempt to cook a second time, but with my assistance?"  
Virgil nodded. Logan would know how to do this safely.  
"Alright, come on then."

First, they turned the oven back on. Logan explained what each dial was for so he'd know next time he had to cook. Next came the sauce.  
"I know it isn't listed in the instructions, but if you heat this a bit, it won't be so sticky and you can stir it." Logan told him.  
"Oh..."  
"I'll heat this up and stir it, you can get started on those carrots."  
The cutting again.  
"Um, isn't it time to add the pasta?" Virgil asked, hoping to buy some time before he had to use a knife.  
"Ah, yes, it is. So just snap the pasta in half and add it to the pot. If you want shorter noodles, break them twice instead of just once."  
Virgil stared at the pot of boiling water, still not sure how this was done.  
"I just drop the pasta in?" He asked, trying to hide the fear in his voice and failing.  
"Correct. Don't worry, it won't splash you, and the boiling water will settle down when you add the pasta." Logan took a handful of noodles and added them to show Virgil it was okay. He hesitantly dropped the pasta in, but he didn't want to get too close to the pot, so he sort of flung the noodles at it instead. This naturally caused water to splash out, startling the anxious trait.  
"You're okay." Logan reminded him. "It'll splash out if you throw it, try again."  
Hesitantly, Virgil extended his hand and let go of the pasta in a less violent manner. No water splashed out this time.  
"There you go, good job." Praise was always important when working with Virgil. If all you did was correct mistakes without offering any positive feedback, he quickly broke down and had to stop. With some praise, he could proceed in spite of any setbacks. At any rate, Anxiety seemed delighted that he'd done it correctly.

"Alright, the pasta is in the pot, the sauce is ready, now the carrots. You do one and I'll do one?"  
Virgil nodded, slowly picking up the knife. Logan noticed the shaking almost immediately.  
"Whoa, relax. You're alright. Let's start by setting the knife down."  
Virgil did, taking a step away fro the cutting board.  
"Maybe I'll chop both carrots. If you were afraid you could've told me and I would've adjusted accordingly." Logan told him. "Will you be alright stirring the pasta until it's done?"  
Virgil nodded.  
"Okay, you can do that, I'll cut the carrots up."  
"Thank you." Virgil said softly. "For helping me."  
"I'm always will to help you, you just have to ask." Logan set to work on the carrots, and soon, the meal was done.  
"Good job." Logan smiled.  
"It was literally all you, don't give me too much credit."  
"No, really. You got scared, and had an attack, but you recovered, and you tried again. I know that's not easy for you, and I'm proud of you Virgil."  
He seemed shocked, unsure what to say. "Y-You really mean that?" Virgil sounded incredibly touched.  
"Of course I mean it." Logan pulled him into a hug, he deserved some form of reward for this. If praise wasn't enough, if the ever important 'I'm proud' didn't do it, reassuring physical contact would. Virgil relaxed against him with a sigh, content for once, and maybe even proud of himself.  
"Alright, ready to call the others down?"  
Virgil nodded, pulling away.

"See, I told you it would be great!" Patton exclaimed.  
"Truthfully, it's not bad for your first meal." Roman admitted.  
"Well, Logan helped some too." Virgil blushed.  
"You two did an excellent job."  
And now Virgil understood why they decided to put him in the cooking schedule. He did feel included, he felt good, he felt... Loved. Patton was always telling him he was part of the family, but for once, Virgil believed him.


End file.
